Fraternity-Testvériség, 1987 (65. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1987-04-01 / 2. szám
Page 6 TESTVÉRISÉG TEEN MISSIONS The young members of our society also look for ways of service. — This is an unusual way to spend summer months: “But ye shall receive power when the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and in Samaria and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Acts 1:8. I had always had an interest in going on a short-term mission trip during summer. Through prayerful consideration and my brother’s urging I sent away an application to Teen Missions International, an organization that deals with strengthening the relationship of young people with the Lord as well as letting them have an active part in His work in other countries. There are two types of Teen Missions teams; the construction-type work teams that build or renovate buildings; and evangelistic teams. (Last year, Zoltán, my brother went to South Africa where he and his team built a church. This year he was an assistant leader to the Liberia team, West Africa.) I praise the Lord for where He put me — on the Spain Evangelistic team, my first choice. My background as a Spanish major at Eastern College made it easier to communicate with the people. I thank and praise God also for allowing me to have this privilege of using my talents to serve Him. During two weeks of rigorous training at the primitive jungle-like swamp camp on Merritt Island, Florida (Teen Missions headquarters), our team learned to live and work together; how to evangelize through song, puppets, word and Bible lessons in Spanish, and most of all to depend on God for strength. We were preparing to be a vacation Bible school team in Murcia in the Southeastern part of Spain, but God had other plans for us. We evangelized to all age groups. However, we had a few opportunities to teach Bible lessons in Santa Cruz and Sunday School at the church where we stayed. From July 3 to August 11, our small team of 12 including 2 leaders did open air evangelism in the public squares or plazas of various towns and cities in the region of Murcia. We also stayed a week in Orihuela, in the region or state of Alicante. Both regions have hot, dry Mediterranean climates. Each typical day involved: group prayer; private devotions in the morning which was one of the quietest and best parts of our busy day; intensive Bible studies on various topics that sometimes lasted up to two hours because of our interest; puppet training; guitar and singing practice; memorizing the Bible verse of the day; working on Spanish; two hours free time to sleep, write letters or walk around town (or do laundry); preparation for the evening evangelism; meal times; and outdoor evangelism. Our footwear for the entire summer from June 14 to August 23 was construction boots for girls and guys. Why wear boots in a hot city like Murcia? All teams wore boots as it was the rule because most of the teams worked in construction and they protected our feet. Some teams worked in places where the outside conditions were very unhealthy. The boots were also a means of witness to people since they wondered why we wore them. Jt gave us many opportunities to witness even during free time or our travel time on trains as we were able to begin to explain about Teen Missions and what we believe as followers of Jesus Christ. We did not talk about doctrine, but strived to be examples of Christ in word, deed and telling about His salvation. As Christians, Jesus commands each one of us to be witnesses — His missionaries and ambassadors. It is not an option for a few hardy souls — it is an obligation to be willing to serve Him wherever He calls us to serve. It is my prayer that we all would take seriously the Lord’s command and respond as Isaiah did: “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.’ ” (Isa. 6:8.) In conclusion, I would like to thank all those who gave both prayerful spiritual support, and also financial support, making it possible for me to go to Spain this summer to be blessed as well as plant seeds of the Gospel in people’s hearts. For further information about getting actively involved or supporting missions for young people of high school and college age, write to: Teen Missions International P. O. Box 1056 Merritt Island, FL 32652 Thank you again for your help! In Christ, Susanne Király
